Hammer or hatchet



' NITED STATES PATENT Brion.

NEWTON CHASE, OF FORT SCOTT, KANSAS.

HAMMER OR HATCHET.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 516,644, dated March 20, 1894.

Application filed June Z8, 1892. Renewed September 1, 1893. Serial No. 484.598. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom t may concern,.-

Be it known that I, NEWTON CHASE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Fort Scott, in the county of Bourbon and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hammers or Hatchets; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. p

My invention relates to improvements in hammers and hatchets, and its object is to provide novel means for bending and clinching wire nails and for withdrawing the same from the wood. n

With these ends in View, the invention contemplates the provision of a transverse aperture of certain diameter and a right angled slot in the head ot' the hammer or hatchet, one portion of said slot opening through the edge of the hammer or hatchet.

Wire nails are substantially the same thickness throughout their length and it is quite a diflicult matter to successfully clinch the ends after they have been driven through the wood. But with my improved device which operates in this connection as a wrench, the nails can be easily bent and clinched in the desired manner.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a View of a hatchet embodying myinvention.

v Fig. 2 is a plan view of a hammer showing my improvements thereon. Fig. 3 is another view of the hatchet with the slot and hole arranged dierently with relation to each other. Fig. 4. is a side view illustrating a modified construction of my hatchet head.

Referring to the drawings, in which like letters of A reference denote corresponding parts in all the figures, A designates the head of the hammer and hatchet, and B the handle.l These may be of any preferred construction as the particular form thereof is not material to the accomplishment of the ends of my invention.

In the head A I provide a right-angled slot C, one end of which, a, runs substantially parallel with the side edge of the hatchet, and the other end, a', extends from part a to and through the edge of the head. This is the preferred arrangement of the slot, but II am aware that its relative position, size and shape may be varied as desired, as for instance, the portion a may open into the other portion a at some other point than at the end thereof, as shown by Fig. 4: In rear or at one side of the slot C isl an aperture c, the diameter of which is preferably greater than the width of the slot. The widthof the slot may be increased from its outer to its inner end if desired as shown by Fig. 4., The slot, which performs the function of a wrench when in operation,is used for smaller nails and the hole for clinching the ends of the larger nails. The nail is fitted in the slot, in the portion o, and its end is clinched in the usual manner, the position and direction of this portion of the slot facilitating the withdrawal of the hammer or hatchet after the nail has been clinched. I can also use the slot and hole for drawing nails and they will be found of great assistance in this kind of work; but it will be observed that it is wholly unnecessary to fit the nail in the portion a when drawing it out. The hole may be arranged on either side of the'. slot, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 3.

. On the end of the handle B is rigidly se cured a twisting head D which is made or cast in a single piece and secured in place in any suitable way. This twisting head is provided with a socket d to receiveV the end'of the handle; and said head D has a slot d which may be straight or right angled, as preferred, and a hole d is also provided in said head. This slot and hole are employed for the same purpose and in substantially the same manner as those in the hammer or hatchet head.

I am aware that changes in the formand proportion of parts and details of construction of the devices herein shown and described as an embodiment of my invention can be made without departing from the spirit or` sacrificing the advantages thereof, and I therefore reserve the right to make such changes as fairly fall within the scope of the same.

No claim is herein made to the twistingv head D adapted to be fitted to the end o f the handle of a hammer or hatchet, said twisting head provided with a slot which lies substantially at right angles to the length of the handle, and also with a transverse aperture, as the same forms the subject matter of a divisional application filed by me on the 9th day of December, 1892, Serial No. 454,636.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A head for a hammer or hatohet provided With an angle-slot, one end ot which opens through an edge of said head, for the purpose described, substantially as set forth.

2. A head for a hammer or hatchet provided With an angle slot having one end opening through an edge of the head, and with a 

